Tag Archives: energy

Facing the end of a major federal subsidy and utilities pushing policy changes to limit savings homeowners with solar panels will receive through net metering, solar companies nevertheless say they will be able to survive – without subsidies.

Two young boys grip their handlebars as they peddle a furious pace of 20 mph, breathlessly arguing who will win the race. One furrows his brow as his older brother stands behind him and yells, “Go faster!”

In a series of reports, ProPublica has examined how the West’s water crisis is as much a product of human error and hubris as it is of nature. The Navajo Generating Station is a monument to man’s outsized confidence that it would always be possible to engineer new solutions to an arid region’s environmental limits.

The solar leasing industry successfully lessened the blow of a bill that added disclosures to leases homeowners sign when they get solar panels, but advocates for solar say the industry is often on the defensive.

Utility companies across the state are asking the Arizona Corporation Commission for changes to the way they handle solar customers. Some utilities are suggesting a change to the rate they pay solar customers for excess energy produced by rooftop solar panels, while Arizona Public Service is asking to increase its fee on solar users from $5 to $21 on average each month.

Senate Bill 1241 by Republican Rep. Warren Petersen of Gilbert would ban counties, cities and towns from banning or charging fees for returning containers such as plastic bags or Styrofoam boxes. It also blocks cities and towns from requiring business owners from measuring or reporting energy usage.